1.What is glaucoma? The normal eye is under a certain pressure. When the pressure inside the eye exceeds the highest level that one’s eye can tolerate, causing a series of visual function damage such as optic nerve damage, visual field defects and vision loss, it is called glaucoma. However, with the leap forward in medicine, the definition of glaucoma has taken on a new concept. Many people with high intraocular pressure do not develop glaucoma, while some people with normal intraocular pressure can further develop progressive visual field reduction and optic nerve damage. Therefore, the average value of IOP measurement should not be used as a criterion for glaucoma diagnosis, but should be combined with other tests. 2.What causes glaucoma? Glaucoma can be divided into two categories, primary glaucoma and secondary glaucoma, according to its cause. Patients with primary glaucoma generally have anatomical factors, such as small eyeball, short eye axis, hyperopia, shallow anterior chamber, etc. Glaucoma may be triggered by mood swings, staying too long in dimly lit areas, or reading with the head down for long periods of time. Severe cases can lead to acute grand mal seizures, which can result in permanent blindness if not treated in time. Secondary occurrence of glaucoma is mostly due to trauma, inflammation, hemorrhage, tumor, etc., which damages the structure of the atrial angle and causes the atrial fluid drainage to be obstructed and leads to an increase in intraocular pressure. In short, glaucoma is caused by the inability of the water generated in the eye to drain properly. 3.What are the symptoms of an acute attack of glaucoma? Acute attack is usually seen in closed-angle glaucoma, which is a disease of middle age and old age, with the onset of the disease mostly above 40 years old, especially in 50-70 years old. Symptoms include: eye swelling and pain, rapid loss of vision and ipsilateral migraine, even nausea, vomiting, increased body temperature and accelerated pulse, etc.; conjunctival congestion, corneal edema, extremely shallow anterior chamber, pupil enlargement, cloudy crystal, high intraocular pressure, and hard as stone eyes. Special attention should be paid to the fact that there are some glaucoma patients with high intraocular pressure, but without any symptoms, but the consequences are more serious, some patients have been blinded before they are found, at which time it is too late for treatment. 4. What is the normal intraocular pressure? Normal intraocular pressure is within the range of 11 to 21 mmHg, but because the tolerance of the optic nerve to intraocular pressure is different for each person, some people have higher than normal intraocular pressure without damage to the optic nerve and visual field, which is called high intraocular pressure and cannot be glaucoma; others have optic nerve damage and visual field defects, but the intraocular pressure is within the normal range, which is called normal intraocular pressure glaucoma or low intraocular pressure glaucoma. This is called normal or low pressure glaucoma. Therefore, high IOP is not always glaucoma, and normal IOP does not exclude glaucoma. 5.What tests should I do when I suspect I have glaucoma? When you suspect that you have glaucoma, you should immediately go to a hospital ophthalmology department for relevant examinations. The basic tests include: intraocular pressure, fundus examination, visual field examination and atrial angioscopy, and further tests will be done according to the above mentioned results. However, in some patients, the symptoms and signs are not obvious, so it is not easy to detect them in the early stage, and it is not easy to make a clear diagnosis immediately. This part of the population should redo all the examinations 3 months or 6 months after the first examination and compare them with the first in order to draw the correct conclusion. 6. What should I do if I have an attack of glaucoma in one eye and the other eye? Primary angle-closure glaucoma is a bilateral disease, but it often develops in one eye first, and it is less common for both eyes to develop at the same time, and the time between the two eyes is variable. Where one eye has had an acute attack, although the other eye has no history of attack, sooner or later there is the possibility of an attack, called acute angle-closure glaucoma preclinical, the literature reports that about 53% to 68% will occur acute attack, so when one eye acute attack, the other eye should also be treated. Generally, 1% pilocarpine is given 1 to 2 times/day. After recovery from surgery in the eye with an acute attack, laser iridotomy or peripheral iridotomy is possible in the other eye. When one eye is operated on, the other eye must be treated with a pupil constrictor to prevent attacks, and the eye that has not had an attack must not be taken lightly. 7. How is glaucoma treated? Treatment of glaucoma includes medication and surgery. Medications can be applied to increase the amount of atrial fluid expelled or to decrease the amount of atrial fluid produced in the eye. Most patients can safely control their eye pressure for several years with the application of medications. Medications for glaucoma are available in many different strengths and combinations. Doctors apply a small amount of medication to produce the best therapeutic effect with the least amount of side effects. It is safe and necessary for patients to take their medications daily and strictly as prescribed to control eye pressure. Surgery is another treatment for glaucoma and includes laser surgery and microsurgery.